The list of academic options at Oakland University is constantly growing. OU currently offers more than 120 undergraduate degrees and more than 120 graduate and certificate options. Students have the opportunity to participate in high-level research as early as their freshman year.

From important registration reminders to daily events, stay focused on the finish line while getting the most out of your educational experience. More than 200 active student organizations take learning to a new level, while student service offices are here to help you succeed.

Nearly 100,000 alumni proudly call OU their alma mater. Upon graduation, you will automatically be welcomed as a member of Oakland University’s very active Alumni Association. Alumni stay connected through networking, volunteering and mentorship programs.

Nearly half a million people visit campus each year to explore OU’s cultural icons, such as the home to OU’s founder, our very own National Historic Landmark. Be inspired by guest speakers from around the world, or awed by artwork, student, faculty and guest performances.

Your gift matters! Contributions from alumni and friends create opportunities that prepare Oakland University students to be leaders. Support the OU Fund (the area of greatest need), scholarships, athletics, the library, Meadow Brook Hall, or one of the hundreds of other areas that make Oakland unique.

The Grizzlies’ growing Division I athletics program is a member of the Horizon League, one of the NCAA’s top performing leagues. Athletes can also be found in dozens of club and intramural sports, or playing recreational games of disc or ball golf on one of OU’s courses.

Study Abroad and Study Away

International Education in the Office of Global Engagement facilitates study abroad throughout the world and study away at campuses throughout North America. The office promotes the global mobility of students and faculty and believes in the transformative power of global engagement and its positive impact on individuals and the world.

Oakland University students may avail themselves of nearly 300 different study abroad programs in 45 countries, some sponsored by our program provider partner, Global Education Oregon (GEO), in Argentina, Austria, Chile, China, England, France, Ghana, Greece, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Spain. Our other major partners, the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE), offers programs on six continents, including innovative programs focused on business, ecology and sustainability, health sciences and service learning. The University Studies Abroad Consortium (USAC) offers more than 50 programs across 27 countries in non-traditional locations or in unique parts of more traditional places including 25 language study options.

The Japan Center for Michigan Universities, a consortium composed of all the public universities in the state of Michigan, coordinates programs in Japanese language and culture in Hikone, Shiga Province, Japan, and can provide up to two years of study, as well as short-term summer courses in subjects like social order, comparative health science, and criminal justice.

Oakland University has an expanding portfolio of exchange agreements with partner universities around the world where Oakland students may directly enroll at a university abroad for a semester or a full academic year while paying OU tuition and earning OU credits. An exchange program with Nanzan University in Nagoya, Japan, provides an opportunity for one or two semesters of study while living with a Japanese family. One- and two-semester exchanges are available with the University of Orléans in France and the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg in Germany. Exchange programs with the University of East Anglia in England and the University of Malta offer a full range of courses taught entirely in English. Summer and fall semester exchanges are available at the Hochschule Mannheim University in Mannheim, Germany and offer mechanical engineering courses taught in English and optional German language courses.

Oakland University also offers a variety of faculty-led international programs, most of which are short term (two to six weeks) and take place during the summer semester. The Department of Modern Languages and Literatures offers an intensive six-week language and culture study at the China Foreign Affairs University in Beijing in May and June of each even-numbered year, providing language study via linguistic immersion in Mandarin Chinese.

The Department of Sociology, Anthropology, Social Work and Criminal Justice offers an Archaeology in Israel program annually which includes three weeks working on excavations at sites of historical importance in association with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Other faculty-led international programs include the British Studies at Oxford program, Classical Theatre in Hydra, Greece, Art History in Volterra, Italy and Film at the Toronto International Film Festival. The Department of Biological Sciences offers field courses in Tropical Ecology in Costa Rica and other locations, and the School of Nursing offers a two-week Nursing Research program in Padova, Italy. The German Contemporary Dance program runs every three years in Berlin. The School of Business Administration offers a variety of international programs for both undergraduates and MBA students. New programs are developed each year.

Through the National Student Exchange, Oakland University students may study away for a semester or a full academic year at one of more than 170 participating colleges and universities throughout North America, including Canada, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and Hawaii. Students pay OU tuition while on exchange and in most cases are eligible to take any courses at their host university for which they have the pre-requisites.

All programs provide credits toward baccalaureate degrees. For additional information about these programs, see the website of the Office of International Education.

The mission of the Office of International Education is to serve all Oakland University students by providing immersive, meaningful academic experiences abroad with a commitment to safety and accessibility. The Office supports, facilitates and encourages study abroad and opportunities to volunteer or intern abroad, perform research abroad or teach in an international setting for students, faculty and staff. The Office seeks to increase and deepen the University’s engagement in the global scholarly community through productive agreements with universities and other appropriate institutions around the world. It serves as a resource center for the Oakland academic community by providing information on international study and research opportunities, supporting internationalization of the curriculum and of campus life and facilitating the presence of foreign students and scholars on our campus. Through such endeavors, the Office affirms the importance of a global outlook as an essential part of the University’s overall mission.